I accept your offer to take charge of
and push the immediate completion of the {Mississippi}
Central railroad. You are hereby ordered to take complete
control of that road and make all impressments necessary to drive
the work through in the shortest time possible. Many interests
demand this. You are ordered to do the same thing with the railroad
from Canton to the lake {New Orleans, Jackson
& Great Northern RR}. I have just heard from Colonel Ranney in
reply to inquiries on that subject. Furnish him with what he wants
and put him in charge of it and press it to a rapid completion.
Start several gangs of hands on it at different points; get the
hands from below Jackson. Answer.